The Fatigued One-Star Restaurant | Apicius in Paris

Once a two-star establishment, Chef Mathieu Pacaud comes from a culinary dynasty, with his father at the helm of the venerable three-star L’Ambroisie in Paris. ✨The menu is quite static, not bad, but nothing more than ordinary. p7 Serving thinly sliced black truffles that have lost most of their aroma on top of a celeriac risotto towards the end of the truffle season adds a needless hardness to the dish rather than enhancing it; p8Fortunately, the subsequent fish paired with a delicious saffron sabayon manages to restore a bit of dignity to French cuisine with its sauce. ✨The guinea fowl presentation is quite ceremonial, with the sauce made from a Jura yellow wine reduction that pairs well with chicken mushrooms. The chicken skin is crispy, but the meat itself is rather tasteless, with the flavor only skin-deep. ✨Although the main courses are lackluster, the amuse-bouche and mignardise are of high quality. The near-perfect pâte en croûte and the salty, warm pastry bread leave a deep impression. The service can be described as terrible.🟣 👀It’s the first time I’ve seen a high-end restaurant serve a course while a guest is in the restroom. 👀A bottle of Lafon Meursault was placed in an ice bucket far away, with no attention to the wine’s temperature. This was a bit puzzling. 👀The bill was placed on the table without any indication that we were ready to pay, more than an hour before the closing time according to Google. 🌟The restaurant is located in an 18th-century private mansion on the Champs-Élysées, renovated by François Joseph Graf, with a nice balance of classical and modern elements, and a very beautiful private terrace garden. It would be great for photos during the day, but at night the outdoor area is closed, and the indoor lighting looks a bit odd on the phone. p3 The restroom features a Buly custom-made distribut…e device, but it’s empty. #FrenchCuisine #MichelinStar #ParisMichelinRestaurants #APICIUS #FineDining